GRAND RAPIDS -- AT&T Inc. is not letting a downturn slow it down, according to executive Cathy Coughlin. Just this week, the communications giant said it will replace its fleet of vehicles with those powered by alternative fuel, and is plowing $18 billion into broader, faster connections nationwide.

Coughlin, senior vice president of the Dallas-based business, shared her personal strategy for success with a sell-out crowd of businesswomen at Thursday's Inforum luncheon.

Her 30-year career spans 15 job changes that started in St. Louis and now is based at corporate headquarters in Dallas.

"I never turned down a job with AT&T," she said. "Every job I've had, as different as they've been from each other, benefits me on the job today."

She takes a long view to the current economic doldrums worldwide.

"With every downturn, comes an upturn. That's the nature of business cycles," Coughlin said. The company's 2009 plan positions it for the future: growing the scope and speed for broadband and data transmission.